Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Announces Rosh HaYeshivah Assuming School’s Leadership and Names New Executive Director
Rabbi Dov Linzer will be taking on the public responsibilities of the president, while retaining the title, role, and responsibilities of Rosh HaYeshiva (photo courtesy of YCT)
With the recent departure of Rabbi Asher Lopatin as its president, Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School (YCT) has not named a next president, but has announced that Rabbi Dov Linzer will head YCT, assuming the school’s leadership, while retaining the title, role, and responsibilities of Rosh HaYeshiva.
Having served with distinction as the Rosh HaYeshiva of YCT since its inception nearly two decades ago, providing scholarly and sensitive religious and Torah guidance to the yeshiva’s students and its 125 rabbis in the field, Rabbi Linzer brings a deep and significant institutional knowledge to his assuming the public leadership of YCT in the capacity of Rosh HaYeshivah.
“Torah and Halakha are the center of our lives and must always serve as our guideposts and inspiration,” said Rabbi Linzer. “It is with this focus that I intend to lead YCT. Chovevei Torah has always been animated by the principle of ohev et ha’briyot u’mekarvan la’Torah – love all people and bring them close to the Torah. The Torah that Klal Yisrael thirsts for is one that is deep and learned, and, at the same time, uplifting and resonant. People need Gemara and Halakha to come out of the beit midrash and speak to the fullness and complexities of their lives. They are looking for rabbis who are relatable and accessible and who can show that a life built on Torah and mitzvot can be expansive, filled with meaning, optimism and joy.”
“Rabbi Dov Linzer embodies first-rate Talmudic scholarship fully engaged with addressing the critical challenges confronting 21st century Jews committed to the values both of Jewish halakhic tradition and of modern ethics and democracy,” said Dr. Steven Bayme, AJC Director of Contemporary Jewish Life. “His assumption of the leadership of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah promises to revitalize Modern Orthodoxy to the benefit of the entire Jewish people.”
Ruthie Strosberg Simon is Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School’s new executive director (photo courtesy of YCT)
Other rabbinic and community leaders echoed this sentiment. “The community needs spiritual guidance that will give it the confidence that a life of Torah can live fully together with modernity, and that the two can be nourished by one another, said Rabbi Benny Lau, speaking from Israel. “Rabbi Linzer is a leader who knows how to navigate this ship and sail it to safety.” Giti Bendheim added, “Rabbi Linzer is a sophisticated and brilliant talmid chacham who courageously takes on the complexities of the world we live in.”
Joining Rabbi Linzer on the leadership team is Ruthie Strosberg Simon as YCT’s newly-appointed Executive Director. Strosberg Simon has been with YCT since 2004 in a variety of capacities, most recently as Director of Placement and Alumni Affairs.
“We are so excited for this new year, with our stellar faculty, strong incoming class, and a host of new partnerships and initiatives,” said Mrs. Strosberg Simon said. “Placing YCT musmakhim and seeing the way they breathe life into Jewish communities across North America and around the world has made it obvious to me that YCT is the Jewish future.”
